


A Goddamn Quiter

by stonegathers



Category: King Falls AM (Podcast)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-23
Updated: 2018-03-23
Packaged: 2019-03-23 08:11:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13783380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stonegathers/pseuds/stonegathers
Summary: Every night before he goes to sleep, he sees Jack. Their life together, his slow descent into the paranormal, his disappearance.And every night he loses a little more hope.





	A Goddamn Quiter

When Sammy first meets him, he thinks that Benjamin Arnold is _nothing_ like Jack Wright. Where Jack always played it fast and loose, Ben is a stickler for the rules. The guy's hand is so firmly on the censor button Sammy's surprised he doesn't get cramps, for Pete's sake. Sure, Ben's got the same fever for the strange that Jack had towards the end, but it's less obsession and more...a kind of boyish enthusiasm (and the longer Sammy stays, the more he realizes it's an enthusiasm shared by the whole of King Falls, and it makes no goddamn sense.) 

Jack was a forward thinker. He had big ideas that he wouldn't hesitate to reach for. When something grabbed his attention, it held on, and he would pour every ounce of his heart and soul into those projects. Their radio show, their life together...these were just a few of the things that Jack had thrown his weight behind, that he didn't give up on. Ben, on the other hand, holds weird grudges, talks like he's stepped right out of the internet (garbage bears? Really?), and has a focus on big-time journalism that makes no sense given the almost single-minded devotion he has to King Falls.

These differences are a comfort, though. A distraction. They're a way to keep a grounded, comfortable distance between Shotgun Sammy and the broken man he is now, post-jack.

Oh, he's not just here for a new life. No, sir. He's got a plan. At least...he's got the vague outline of one. A sort of sketch in his mind on how to find Jack, to bring him home. To make things _right_ again. He just needs those few hours every night, where he can put on his 'everything is fine' persona. It's a ritual that keeps him sane. Part of him considers asking Ben for help with his research, with his search, but he holds back. Small towns aren't exactly the most open-minded of places, and while Benjamin Arnold is definitely a good guy, Sammy just...doesn't think he'll understand. There's no way anyone here would understand just how important finding Jack is. Just how much Sammy's soul _hurts_ with the other man gone. How do you explain that to someone, let alone someone who might not even be _able_ to look past the relationship itself? How do you explain that half of you is gone, and nothing will be the same until that missing piece clicks back into place? It's not just the worry that gives him pause. The radio show is good. It's something a drowning man can cling to, and the last thing Sammy wants is to ruin it with...well, with everything else going on.

Those first few nights, lying alone in his too-quiet room in this too-quiet town, Sammy stares up at his fan as it slowly spins. He tries to hold Jack in his mind. Not the Jack that went missing, but the man before the paranormal investigations and dark circles. The man he hopes to get back.

_It had become more common, in the last few months. Sammy would wake in the middle of the night to an empty bed, Jack's side cool to the touch. Like he hadn't been there all night. Sammy would sigh, roll over, find his slippers, and make his way to their office. Before the strange phone calls and obsession, before the arguments where Sammy_ begged _with Jack to find some help or talk to Lily...anything but fall further down this weird, occult rabbit hole...before all that, Jack would sometimes stay up late to prep for their show._

_Back then, Sammy would make him a cup of coffee before sliding into his own chair, kissing the other man on the cheek as he passed him the warm cup._

_It was different, now. Now Sammy would hesitate in the doorway. The glow of the computer was offensive, and jack's outline sat practically motionless in front of it as he watched video after video, read article after article. Gently, Sammy knocked. The only indication Jack heard him was a subtle shift and the slow, lazy raise of his hand._

_"Hey, you coming to bed?"_ _He wouldn't be, but it didn't stop him from asking._

"I don't wanna do this--" Ben's frustration is almost a physical thing, all over the guest Sammy had scheduled for the night. He hadn't thought it would be a big deal, and yet here they are. The self-proclaimed King of King Falls had honestly seemed like he would make an excellent guest on their show, given how much the town _loves_ everything paranormal, and it was the perfect way to gather more information on the strange things that seemed to settle over the town like a fog. The perfect way to try and suss out information on where Jack might have gone while also keeping suspicions at bay.

"And now Ben thinks I'm just messing with him when actually I'm just trying to get a better grasp on the supernatural phenomena that happens in our beautiful town." Sammy doesn't look at Ben when he says this because it's only a half-truth. He _had_ been looking into the supernatural happenings of King Falls, but he was only doing it for Jack. To try and put himself in the other man's frame of mind, try and figure out where he might have wandered off to. He still doesn't quite believe everyone's claims, and why would he? But he needs every scrap of information he can find, and he needs it now.

And so King of King Falls it is.

The show is a disaster, of course. From start to finish Ben just wouldn't let Howard Ford Beauregard III's _anything_ slide, and eventually Sammy just gave up on trying to gather information and went with the flow of the show. Which was fine, it was pretty obvious early on that HFB3 was less a mine of knowledge and more an eccentric.

And while Sammy tried not to think about it too much, tried to keep a detached disinterest, that show marked the first time he thought: _Huh, Ben reminds me of someone._

**Author's Note:**

> The first chapter is a little short. They'll get longer as we go, once we get into new territory. I'll be doing big time leaps re: canon, so you're not just reading a re-hash of the podcast, but I also wanted to touch on some stuff to flesh a few things out. I hope you guys enjoyed, and I'll see you next chapter!


End file.
